Uber or Lyft

I'm stuck which one I should book. Has anyone been here before and what did you think

Thanks

Some of the parking lots sold their property during the pandemic since they had no income. There are still a few that survived. Google Tampa cruise ship parking. 
The garage parking is the most convenient since it's 1 block from the pier

I live in Tampa and agree with John. Pre-covid there were plenty of rideshare drivers around the corner from the port. Since the port is a short distance to downtown Tampa, it shouldn't be an issue

Scheduled to arrive at 7 AM. There is about a 10% chance you can make it to the airport by 9am. I would pick a flight after 11 or 12

Royal has their own building there. Not sure what you mean by separate entrance

Uber/Lyft but your luggage may not fit in an UberX car because many of those drivers have compact cars. Use Comfort or XL

Uber/Lyft should be around $50-$75 for the car

What about 2 UberX cars? That might be cheaper than one XL car. Uber has a cost calculator on their website

Ships top speed is around 25 mph and the distance is about 25 miles but it goes pretty slow the first 5-7 miles. Probably around 90 minutes

23 hours ago, Bases5 said:

About how long does it take to get from the port to the Bridge.  
Thanks 

It's about 25 miles. Probably around 30-40 minutes if there are no accidents on the way

7 hotels with a 5 minute drive of the port. Sorry, I can't answer your rental car question

3 hours ago, JohninDC said:

Have you checked estimates for either Uber or Lyft?  I would not dismiss a one one car rental, although current pricing and availability might make it the expensive option. pre-virus Cocoa Beach Shuttle and Cortrans were the most often suggested shared shuttle options - have you checked with them?

 

We prefer to stay in Orlando (1000's of hotels in every price range) and then make our way to PC the morning of the cruise.  Your call. 😎

I agree with John. There is so much more to do in Orlando. Getting from Orlando to the pier is 45 minutes (without traffic) You can use rideshare/taxi/bus from airport. Bus is the most hassle though because you have to wait until it fills up before they leave

Royal put a schedule on their website a few weeks ago what ship and when it sails. Brilliance hasn’t changed

There are tons of hotels next to MIA. Just search your favorite travel website for your price range

Renting a car would be your cheapest option. Sometime in 2022, Brightline Train is going to start serving Orlando Airport to Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Miami. The track is under construction now

On 4/13/2021 at 1:08 PM, LadyBerard said:

We are booked to cruise on the Constellation  this Nov. 7th (Hopefully, it goes forward).  We are from Massachusetts, so, we will be flying in a day early and staying at the Sailport Waterfront Suites.  I think it was $128, plus taxes for AAA rate.  When we booked this place, it was before the pandemic, and rates and reviews were great.  However, lately, reviews have not been so wonderful.  If it were my my husband and myself going, I would pay $$$$ to stay at the Marriott Water Street.  Unfortunately, there are a group of us going and staying at the Sailport now.  I don't think everyone will want to spend that kind of $$$$ for one prenight hotel.  Anybody have any suggestions on where to stay that is NICE and not big money???

 

All of the hotels in green are less than $150 night. I got it from hotels.com

I also live in Tampa. You pretty much have 2 choices for hotels. Stay near the airport (which is the cheaper option) Or stay in downtown Tampa, there are about 5 hotels which you can walk to the pier. If you search for The Florida Aquarium, the pier is next door to it

Using cruise line buses are usually more money once you break it down per person

Icon class is next at around 200,000 tons. I doubt they will build more Oasis class ships. Once Wonder comes out, that will number 5 of the Oasis class. https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/4225/

On 9/28/2020 at 10:10 PM, Cienfuegos said:

The Port Tampa Bay is a huge county authority, with land on many coasts of Hillsborough Bay. The cruise terminal area is in the northern most section of the Port, which keeps travelers and export / import trucks or trains separate. The cruise terminals are conveniently located for guests spending the nights before and after in hotels.

 

The area west of the Skyway bridge is in Pinellas County (north side) and Manatee County (south side).  Whether these counties have an interest in hosting a cruise port outside the bridge, or have space is not clear to me

 

For what it's worth,  perhaps a larger ship with a collapsible stack and masts could get the under the bridge. The clearance is about 180 feet, which is considered low by cruise ship standards.  More important, it's very low by modern container ship standards. The Bayonne Bridge in NJ was raised from 180 feet to 215 feet, specifically for the new generation of container ships.

I’ve heard that rumor as well but it has several problems. First it’s 30-45 minutes to the airport which is a major problem. Second, if the current ships are roughly 100k tons, why can’t they build a ship a little wider and longer but same height at 125k to 150k tons? My guess is they will all be gone from Tampa and Baltimore in 15-20 years as these mega ships at 200k tons are becoming more popular. Sad but bigger ships are more profitable for the cruise lines and to expensive to build a port and roadway system for 1 or 2 cruise lines

Take a look at this post. The same topic was discussed

Depends what cruise you like to sail on. Royal has the Radiance class ships that won't be going away soon

22 hours ago, bafinegan said:

What about Holiday Inn Express Tampa East, Ybor city? We booked because it has a park and cruise special with a shuttle to the port.  

Thanks for any advice!

 

Baf

Ybor City is a cool area to walk around during the daytime and has lots of restaurants and bars. At night time, it's flooded with 20s and 30s aged people getting drunk and rowdy

I live in Tampa. The hotels you listed are great choices. There are a bunch of hotels within a mile of the pier which can be an easy walk to the pier. The Channelside and downtown Tampa areas have plenty of restaurants. If you are staying for a night or 2 I suggest rideshare over renting a car. The Tampa Marriott Water Street and Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk Hotel are probably Tampas most popular hotels. The Riverwalk is pretty cool to walk at night if the weather is nice. A side note, The Channelside district has construction on every corner with a lot of buildings under construction so traffic is a mess there during busy times.